Smart water: Wastewater transport and collection

Smart water technologies can significantly improve efficiency, save money and reduce environmental impact when collecting and transporting wastewater. Learn how South Bend, Indiana, created the smartest sewer system in the world to reduce overflows by 70%.

Wastewater managers are facing increasing challenges with limited budgets. They must prevent combined sewer overflows, minimize maintenance and energy costs, and make sure systems and equipment are operating efficiently, without harming the environment.

Smart water technologies can help provide solutions to all of these challenges. Intelligent equipment, such as self-optimizing pumps, can help water managers automatically improve performance.

When this intelligent equipment is connected to smart networks, water managers can respond to events and performance issues in real time. Data from smart networks can also be combined with advanced algorithms for proactive system management.

Using real-time data and analytics enables water managers to make smarter decisions about infrastructure repair and investment, while preventing overflows through better asset usage.

Xylem’s smart solutions for wastewater transport and collection

Flygt Concertor is the world’s first wastewater pumping system with integrated intelligence. It senses operating conditions and adapts performance in real time, while providing feedback to station operators. It also has a much smaller footprint and significantly lower total cost of ownership than conventional systems.

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Xylem’s cloud-based TotalCare alarm monitoring system keeps a close eye on customers’ water and wastewater pump stations. If any leaks or other problems are detected, an alert is sent to the TotalCare service team, who can pinpoint the exact issue and move quickly to solve it. This results in lower costs for the customer and less environmental impact.

EmNet, a Xylem brand, offers solutions that enable wastewater collection systems to dynamically adapt to changing storm conditions and maximize storage. The solutions combine real-time monitoring, analysis and control optimization, delivered at a fraction of the cost of traditional overflow mitigation strategies.

Case: Stierberg wastewater pumping station

Intelligent system eliminates clogs and saves €5,400 in nine months

Challenge: The Stierberg wastewater pumping station, located in Austria, was struggling with severe clogging due to high levels of debris in the plant’s wastewater flow. This included wet wipes, rags and solid materials. Clogging was becoming so common that station operators were required to unclog the pumps at least once a week.

Solution and results: The utility decided to trial Xylem’s Flygt Concertor system. During the six-month trial period, no instances of clogging were reported at the pumping station. The trial period was so successful, Flygt Concertor was permanently installed at the station. In the first nine months of operation, the utility saved €5,400 in maintenance costs.

Case: Kindergarten in Arendal, Norway

Cloud solution reduces service costs and sewage overflows

Challenge: A kindergarten in Norway was having a recurring problem of wastewater overflows in their basement garage. Cleaning up and fixing these overflows was a time-consuming and expensive process, with a major risk for environmental impact.

Solution and results: The kindergarten decided to install Xylem’s cloud-based TotalCare alarm monitoring system. With this system, the service team immediately receives an alert and is able to bring the right equipment and get to the site fast. Xylem also solved the problem with clogging pumps, to help prevent any overflows in the future.

Case: South Bend, Indiana

Challenge: The City of South Bend, Indiana, has a combined sewer system designed only to carry maximum dry water flow. Before 2008, the sewers overflowed nearly every time it rained, with an additional 25 to 30 dry overflows a year.

Solution and results: In 2008, Xylem’s EmNet brand installed a digital SCADA real-time decision support system, which now includes 152 sensor monitoring sites and 13 automated gates and valves. The system has completely eliminated dry weather overflows and reduced combined sewer overflows by over 70%. The city has also saved $1.5 million per year in operations and maintenance, reduced E. coli concentrations in the local river by 50%, and saved up to $500 million in capital expenditure.

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For more than 50 years, Making Waves has provided informed, useful and industry-leading commentary on the world of water – first in print and now as a digital magazine and social media channel. Making Waves is published by Xylem, a leading provider of fluid technology and equipment solutions for the planet’s most challenging water issues. www.xylem.com